Laxus's thinking was simple: since he had already seen Ankh's location information, why bother with traps?!
Laxus's violent magic gathered on the magic circle, and a thunder cannon, like a natural disaster, directly erupted, instantly sweeping away a patch of towering trees in front of him!
Incidentally, the traps Makarov had meticulously set were also completely destroyed… Makarov, seeing this through the crystal ball, had his beard bristle with anger, desperately panting to calm his inner impulse.
The guild members watched their Master with concern, afraid he might not catch his breath and just drop dead on the spot… On the other side, Ankh, who had caused such a ruckus, quietly leaned against a tree, resting with his eyes closed.
Not long after, Ankh heard the sound of Laxus's lightning explosion, just as he had expected.
Ankh smiled slightly and walked in the direction where the lightning had struck, calling out, "Let's go, Erza, let's meet up with them."
Erza frowned, questioning, "Didn't Master say before that we should bypass the traps and use tactics to deal with our opponents?"
Ankh said nothing, simply walking forward on his own.
He understood very well that the winner of this assessment had already been decided by the Master; it was none other than himself and Laxus.
The traps here, and even the teammates, were merely individual test questions for the two of them.
After all, although Erza was a variable, she was still young.
If she were to cultivate for another two years, she would certainly be a great threat, but for this year's assessment, she couldn't deal with Ankh and the other person.
But Ankh didn't plan to tell Erza about this, so as not to dampen her enthusiasm for the exam… Erza watched Ankh, who was walking further and further away, hesitated for a moment, but still obediently followed him.
Ankh was a little surprised to hear Erza's footsteps following him.
Given Erza's upright, unyielding, and stubborn personality, she should have, by rights, stopped Ankh and corrected the examination process.
It seemed Erza really listened to him… Time passed minute by minute, and Ankh and Laxus displayed an inexplicable tacit agreement, covering half the forest, rushing towards each other while using magic to clear their paths.
The beautiful nature was thus destroyed by two beasts… At the same time, Makarov, who saw the traps destroyed, was even more tearful… The two sides blasted each other for an unknown duration, and finally, with one of Laxus's Thunder Crushing Fists, they finally saw the opponent they had been longing for.
Ankh smiled knowingly when he saw Laxus appear, his body flashing with lightning.
Cana, seeing Ankh and Erza, was so scared she quickly hid behind Laxus, but she suddenly realized with surprise that Laxus was actually excited!
This was the first time she had seen the arrogant Laxus show such an expression since she joined the guild.
It seemed Laxus and Ankh had a really good relationship.
Cana poked her head out, secretly observing the two confronting each other from a distance, and some impure thoughts suddenly popped into her head… Laxus didn't care what Cana was thinking; as soon as he saw he had found his opponent, he immediately extended his fist, his sharp eyes flashing with fighting spirit.
"Come on, Ankh!"
Ankh heard him speak, and the magic in his body rapidly circulated, a magic circle quickly formed, and the surrounding ground instantly caved in from a mysterious force!
Centered around Ankh, a huge deep pit formed on the ground in an instant, and Cana and Erza on the opposite side immediately suffered an undeserved calamity.
Cana was directly pressed to the ground by this Titan Gravity, and Erza's legs sank deep into the ground; she gritted her teeth tightly, straightened her back, and painstakingly endured her teammate's magic.
Laxus, who often sparred with Ankh, stood up straight without any pressure.
This was Ankh's opening move to intimidate; he had long been used to it.
The originally clear sky had, at some point, gathered a thick dark cloud, and then, in a short time, a heavy rain quickly began to fall.
This kind of rainy weather was most suitable for the use of Lightning Magic!
The electricity on Laxus's body was stimulated even more intensely, and he uttered in a low voice, "Even the heavens are helping me, Ankh, take this!"
Before Ankh could respond, Laxus had already charged out, and an unprecedented scorching lightning bolt struck, bringing with it boundless terror.
"Lightning Dragon's Crushing Fist!"
To use Dragon Slayer Magic right from the start?
It seemed Laxus intended to fight with all his might until the end.
Ankh immediately understood his thoughts and also became serious.
Black, eerie death energy surged up, Ankh's aura instantly became silent and terrifying, and that death magic, as if to devour all living beings, burst forth with ferocity.
"Death God's Devouring Fist!"
Ankh did not dodge or evade; Titan Gravity Magic and God Slayer Magic were activated simultaneously, and the attack power, furiously unleashed by the dual cores, suddenly erupted!
The Crushing Fist and Devouring Fist collided with a thunderous roar, golden and black magic intertwined and raged, the deep pit on the ground directly cracked open, and the small forest behind the two was instantly annihilated, blasting out a considerable fan-shaped wasteland!
And the two people at the center of the explosion were also somewhat disheveled, blown back quite a distance.
However, Ankh, with the help and pressure of Titan Gravity on his body, stabilized himself after only a few steps.
In comparison, Laxus was much worse off; the highly aggressive death energy stimulated every inch of his body, and he was instantly sent flying several meters away.
The Devouring Fist could absorb the opponent's magic and body like a black hole; Mages who could withstand this kind of attack were all masters of both physical and magical cultivation.
The magical energy on Laxus's body was like a maggot attached to a bone, clinging to him and silently devouring his stamina and magic power.
This special magic was unsolvable unless the magic dissipated automatically when its time was up, or there were purification-type skills.
But unfortunately, Laxus did not have any.
Ankh's magic was quite peculiar, always giving Laxus a strange illusion.
It was as if all magic, in front of his magic, had to be suppressed!
The destructive and draining nature of the death energy was very lethal; Laxus absolutely could not engage in a prolonged battle with him and had to hit him with one strike!
Having just unleashed such powerful magic, Laxus immediately regrouped, and a thick torrent of lightning was gripped in his palm, shaped into a halberd, and thrown at Ankh.
Ankh showed no mercy; the Devouring power of the Death God was swiftly unleashed, shattering the Lightning Dragon's Fangtian Halberd with a single punch, but Laxus's fist followed closely and slammed into his face!
Titan Gravity Magic quickly dissipated Laxus's punch and instantly rebounded it.
But Ankh still couldn't escape; his face took an electric shock with magical properties, and it immediately became red and swollen.
Laxus, repelled by his own punch, charged forward again, directly engaging in close-quarters combat like a flash of lightning.
The two furiously unleashed their respective techniques, and explosions from colliding magic continuously rang out; under the pouring rain, deep-seated fighting spirit was ignited in everyone's hearts.
After an unknown period, the convergence of death energy and lightning, the explosions, and the thudding of flesh made the downpour even more intense.
The two women, who had been firmly suppressed by Titan Gravity, were still struggling, and the constantly flowing lightning currents made them suffer immensely.
Cana began to grit her teeth and stand up, and Erza also gradually got used to the Titan Gravity; she looked at the two fighting with furious eyes, and an angelic radiance shone from her body.
"Re-equip!"
"Ankh, this is team combat!"